Shin Multi Tensei: Persona 4
by BrittonbubbaFTW
Summary: When a series of murders breaks out in a quiet town near Washington D.C., it's up to Britton and his Investigation Team to find the culprit. Rated T for violence, language, sexual themes, and a scene of drinking.
1. Prologue: The Velvet Room

The opinions expressed herein do not necessarily reflect those of the creator nor any person he knows.

* * *

In a foggy area in an unknown place, a limousine is driving down the road. Inside the limousine was a dark room, lit with a blue light. There was a boy who woke up in there. He was wearing a blue shirt and khaki pants. He had dark brown hair, almost black, and had blue eyes. Something was off to him. He never seen a place like this. He stood up and looked around, and then he saw two figures.

One of them was a woman in a white dress like that a lady in a castle would wear, and she sat on the right side of the room. She had long, silver hair and a hair clip on the back of her head that resembles a rainbow butterfly. She opens her eyes and looks at a man in the center of the room, who had a dark blue skin color. He wore a white top hat and coat, with a white cape that fades to blue at the bottom. Inside of his cape, it's blue and starry, like looking into the night sky. He had a red brooch on his coat. He has a monocle on his left eye.

The blue man's eyes were closed until...

"Welcome to the Velvet Room."

The blue man slowly opened his eye, revealing that they were blue. The inside of his mouth was blue as well.

The boy backed away from the stranger. "Now, do not be afraid of my frightening appearance. I am here to be your ally." The blue man looks at the boy, who seemed to be in his late teens, and studied him for a bit.

"Ah, it seems we have a guest with an intriguing destiny." He chuckles, then proceeds with talking. "My name is Blumiere... I am delighted to make your acquaintance."

The boy looked at Blumiere, reluctantly. "Where am I?"

Blumiere looks around. "This place exists between dream and reality. Mind and matter. It is a place that only those bound by a 'contract' may enter. It may be that such a fate awaits you in the near future." The boy looked at him with confusion. "'Exists between dream and reality'? 'Contract'? 'Such a fate awaits you in the future'? Stop speaking in riddles, you argyria-infected weirdo!"

"Now, now, let's not get hasty." Blumiere looked at him with a comforting smile. "Now then... Why don't you introduce yourself?"

The boy, now feeling like this man might not be an enemy, says his name. "Britton... You can just call me Britt."

"Do you have a last name?" Blumiere asks.

Britton looks at him. "I do, but I don't want to reveal it to people I don't know too well..."

Blumiere nods. "Hmm... I see." Blumiere then motions with his hand. "Now, let's take a look into your future, shall we?"

Britt looks confused. "Are you a fortune teller?"

Blumiere spawns a deck of cards in the center of the table in front of him. "You could call me that, if you believe in fortune telling."

Britt responds with, "Well, it depends on who's doing it."

Blumiere lays all the cards face down. "Each reading is done with the same cards, yet the result is always different..." Blumiere chuckles to himself. "Life itself follows the same principles, doesn't it?" Britt can't help but nod in agreement. Blumiere flips one card up.

"Hm... The Tower in the upright position represents the immediate future. It seems a terrible catastrophe is imminent. The card indicating the future beyond that is..."

Blumiere flips another card face up. "The Moon in the upright position. This card represents 'hesitation and 'mystery'... Very interesting indeed."

Britt looks at the two cards he flipped. "So, what does this all mean?"

Blumiere looks at him. "It seems you will encounter a misfortune at your destination, and a great mystery will be imposed upon you. In the coming days, you will enter into a contract of some sort, after which you will return here."  
Britt looks at Blumiere. "Does that mean I can come here and go from here at will?" Blumiere nods. "The coming year is a turning point in your destiny... If the mystery goes unsolved, then your future may be forever lost. My duty is to provide assistance to our guests to ensure that does not happen."

Blumiere waves his hands over the cards on the table and they disappear. "Ah! I have neglected to introduce my wife and assistant to you." Blumiere gestures to the lady in the white dress and looks at her. "This is Lady Timpani. She is a resident of this place, like myself."

Lady Timpani looks over at Britton now. "No need to call me 'Lady', Britton. Just call me Timpani. I am here to accompany you through your journey."

Blumiere looks back at Britt. "We shall attend to the details another time. Until then, farewell..."

Britt's vision started to fade to black as he heard an alarm clock go off.

Britt wakes up and realizes... "Oh... SHIT! I have to get to the train station, pronto!"

* * *

I hope you'll like my adaptation of Persona 4.  
Persona 4 and the Velvet Room belong to Atlus.  
Blumiere and Timpani belong to Nintendo.  
Britton belongs to me.


	2. Chapter 1: Moving In

The opinions expressed herein do not necessarily reflect those of the creator nor any person he knows.

It's also important to note that I'm basing this off of Persona 4 Golden.

* * *

**April 11th, 2013**

A Koopa girl with her blonde hair in a ponytail in a bikini is playing around in a waterfall, laughing and having fun. The scene shifts to her playing volleyball with a male Koopa, who is having trouble keeping up with her energy, causing the girl to win. It then shows her laying on a beach towel, with the camera focusing on her cute, 3-toed feet. The Koopa girl then goes under an umbrella and then, opens a soda can, then drinks out of it. "Let's face it, diets don't seem to work when you want them to, and even cheap gym memberships add up fast. But now, there's a drink that gives me the good flavor and the right energy, without having to put up with sugar and fatty stuff!" A bigger version of the can appears on the left side of the screen. "Slim down, with the taste of Calorie Magic."

The commercial cuts to the news. "And we're back. Now, on to some juicy news: The Toadette Scandal." This news broadcast is coming from almost every TV in the city.

A man just scoffs. "First, he bags the best cook in Rogueport, then he has an affair with a teacher. Do chicks really dig those related to royalty?"

"Isn't it just stuff like wealth and popularity?" A woman suggested. "When you get down to it, riches and love is what matters."

"Hey! What was that supposed to mean?"

"What do you think."

Britton was at the metro station, waiting for his train, and he overheard this conversation. He packed all his game consoles and video games for when he gets to his house, and he packed his laptop and chargers as well. He also packed his school uniform, clothes for winter, clothes for summer, clothes for fall, and clothes for spring. He came especially prepared.

Britt then had a flashback.

_"I'm sure you're all aware of this, but Britton will be transferring to a new school at the end of this school year, so he won't be in your high school until 10th grade." His teacher announced in front of the class. Noises of sadness and shock come from most of the classroom. "Quiet down, I'm not finished yet!"_

Britt takes one last look at the city, remembering his suburban town well. Britt then looks at his cell phone. A text read "Meet us outside Apollo Station at 4 P.M."

The intercom starts up. "We will arrive at Apollo Terminal in a few minutes. Passengers headed for Atravese and Apollo Station, please go to the other side of the platform."

Britt grabs his belongings and then the train came to a stop.

"The scandal involves Rogueport's chef, Zess T., going to a cooking competition with Dyllis and Tayce T. overseas." A newswoman said, with a picture of Zess T. and another Toad with a white mustache and brown cap appearing. "Toadsworth, a royal underling of Princess "Peach" Toadstool, whom Zess T. just married last year, is under suspicion of having an affair. The supposed mistress is a teacher, Toadette."

A bear in proper attire, yellow shorts, and a blue sack was watching this news with a little girl, also a bear, next to him. The bears look at the clock. The girl says, "Oh! Should we go now?"

The older bear responds with, "Yeah, it's just about."

"The question on everyone's mind is how this love triangle will affect-" The television was turned off.

* * *

_Behind a table, there seems to be a woman being pushed by a man._

Britton was already on the other train. He looked out the window and saw a suburban town, which would be his destination. The train goes into a tunnel.

_The woman seems to be struggling._

Britton closes his eyes.

_The woman was pushed to the wall and strangled by the man, then a vision of Blumiere and Timpani appeared._

Britt gasps and opens his eyes. The train goes out of the tunnel and a nice view of the country is shown. Britt sighs to himself. "This will be my home for a whole year..." Britt thought to himself.

Britt gets off the train and out of the station. The intercom spoke, "We've arrived at Apollo Station, destination: Atravese."

It was a cloudy afternoon in Atravese. The ground was wet, as if it was raining heavily earlier.

"Hey! Over here!"

Britt walked to the voice, it was the two bears, the big guy and the little girl.

The bear smiled. "Well, you're more handsome in real life than in that photo." Britt blushed and shook hands with the bear.

The bear had a kind expression on his face, yet he also retained a stern posture. "Welcome to Atravese. My name is Banjo. I'll be your guardian until the end of the year... Let's see... I..."

Britt, knowing Banjo from a game, speaks for him. "You saved your sister from that witch the first time, revived one of your friends after taking out that witch a second time, and you used vehicles to fight the third time, which means you're equally capable in hand-to-hand combat and being an engineer."

"...Right! You must know a lot about me."

Britt has a smile on his face. "Anyway, it's nice to meet you. I'm Britton. Just call me Britt."

Banjo smiles. "Heh, nice to meet you, too. Anyway, you mentioned my little sister, so, here she is. Come on, Tooty, introduce yourself to our new housemate."

Tooty blushed and had a hard time speaking to Britt. Was it because Britt was tall for his age? The fact he can carry such a heavy load in his bag? What ever the reason, she had a hard time even looking up. "...'lo." She hid behind Banjo's back.

Banjo chuckles. "What're you so shy for?"

Tooty gets angered at the question and smacks Banjo's behind, causing him to laugh more. "Ow, hahaha."

"Well, let's get going. My car's over there."

Banjo lead Tooty and Britt to his car. While Britt walked by a girl, a piece of paper fell on the ground.

The girl, who looked relatively unfriendly, took notice. "...Hey."

The girl had pink hair in a bun, blue skin, and a fancy suit. She also wore glasses.

Britt hears her and calls for Banjo. "Hold on, something came up!"

The girl picks up the small piece of paper on the ground. "You dropped this."

Britt receives the paper from her. "Thank you."

The girl looks sort of reluctant to be a little more kind. "Whatever. All I did was pick it up."

The paper was a note Britt made for himself with Banjo's address. Britt thanks the girl again, but this time, she was silent, and then she walked away.

Banjo calls for Britt. "You ready now?" Britt walks to Banjo's car.

* * *

**Atravese, Central shopping district, Gas station...**

The car parks at a gas station. The gas station attendant comes up to the car. The attendant was a female with a tone of male in her voice. She had platinum blonde hair.

She spoke in a cheery voice. "Hi! Welcome to Moel!"

Banjo looks at Tooty. "Can you go to the bathroom by yourself?"

Tooty nods. Banjo and Tooty exit the car. Tooty then looks around, trying to find the bathroom.

The attendant takes notice of this. "It's in the back, to your left. You know which side is left? The side you don't hold your pencil with."

Tooty gets annoyed with her help. "I know... Geez..." Tooty runs off as Britt exits the car.

The attendant smiles. "She's at that age where she wants to be independent. Anyway, are you taking a trip?"

Banjo answers. "No, we just came back from picking Britt up. He just moved here from the suburbs."

The attendant nods. "The suburbs, huh? He's gonna have an easy time adjusting to this place, then."

Banjo nods. "Fill 'er up, please. Regular's fine."

The attendant looked attentive again. "Right away, sir!"

Banjo walks away, muttering, "Good time as any to have that bite to eat and a drink." He pulls out a Sweet Choco-bar out of one pocket and a bottle of Stamina Juice out of the other. (They both have honey in their recipes.)

The attendant looks at Britt. "Are you in high school?"

"Sure," Britt responds, "Why do you ask?"

The attendant keeps talking. "It doesn't surprise a suburban boy an how little there is to do, does it?"

"No, I have a lot of things to occupy me."

"That's good. If you were a city boy, then I'd be sure you'd get bored really fast. You'd either be hanging out with friends or doing part-time jobs. Speaking of which, we're actually looking for part-time help right now."

"Oh, really? Well..."

"Give it some thought, why don't you? We don't mind if you're a student." The attendant holds her hand out and then she and Britt shake hands.

Tooty comes out of the bathroom. The attendant blinks. "I should get back to work now." She walks over to the gas tank.

Suddenly, Britt felt a strange pain in his head. It made him feel lightheaded and dizzy.

Tooty walks up to him, apparently concerned. "Are you okay? Did you get carsick? You don't look too good?"

Britt leans against the car. "It's probably exhaustion from the long trip... Now that you mention it, I do feel a bit dizzy..."

Banjo walks up to them. "What's wrong? You okay?"

Britt shakes his head no. "I just felt lightheaded."

Banjo nods. "That's understandable. It must have been a long trip for you. Why not take a little walk? Get some fresh air? Just let me know when you're ready to go."

Britt nods.

Banjo speaks again. "Also, take this." He gives Britt $5. "Go get a ginger ale for yourself while you're at it. I'll wait here. Why don't you take a walk and get some fresh air? You can check out all the shops around here while you're at it, because they're near our house. Just don't go too far."

* * *

Britt starts to walk down the road. There are a fair amount of people walking around the shopping district, not unlike a tent sale. He sees someone familiar. It's the girl he saw at the train station.

The girl notices him as well. "Hm...? Have we met before?"

Britt nods. "I saw you at the train station."

The girl nods. "I see. Hmm..." The girl starts to think to herself.

Britt walks away and looks at a poster on the window of the bookstore. It says:

**The following books are being released on 4/20!**

**"The Lovely Man", $12.69, The famous Man series-now in stock!**

**"Expert Study Methods", $29.48, Get an edge over your classmates!**

**"Beginner Fishing", $16.84, Now you can be a fisher too!**

Britt looks inside the bookstore itself. It's fairly empty inside.

Britt then goes over to some odd looking store with a full set of samurai armor outside. A fierce-looking man is single-mindedly pounding on something in the back of the store. Britt then decides not to enter.

He goes over to another store. Outside, there's a line of old capsule vending machines. However, the dials are rusted in place, so they can't be turned. Inside, there are lines of fresh produce on the shelves and a friendly-looking old woman behind the counter.

Britt looks out to the North of the shopping district, but he knows Banjo is waiting for him, so he can't wander off too far. He also remembers the five dollars Banjo gave him. There are some soda bottles on the counters in the lady's shop. He goes in, buys his ginger ale, and comes back.

Tooty sees him and starts to talk. "Um... Are you okay?" Tooty seemed worried about Britt.

Banjo looks at Britt, keeping that kindly yet stern look on his face. "How're you feeling? Ready to get back in the car?"

Britt nods, "I'm ready."

"All right, let's hit the road then."

* * *

Banjo, Tooty, and Britton make it to their house.

The house is tall and wide, and it looks spacious.

Britt thinks to himself, "For the next year, this place will be my home."

In the evening, the three had sodas in their hands and small instant lunches in front of them. Banjo raises his can and says, "All right, let's have a toast." Britt and Tooty raise their cans as well, then they took a drink.

"So, your mom and dad are busy. They're working overseas, was it?" Banjo said. "I know it's only for a year, but getting stuck in a place like this because of your parents... it's rough being a kid. Well, it's just me and Tooty here, so it'll be nice having someone like you around. So long as you're here, you're part of the family, so make yourself at home."

Britt smiles and blushes. "Thank you for your kindness."

Banjo laughs. "C'mon, no need to be so formal. Look, you're making Tooty all tense."

Tooty looks down at her food nervously.

Banjo keeps a smile on his face. "Well, anyway... Let's eat."

Britt and Tooty grab their silverware. Banjo was about to grab his, but his phone starts to ring. Banjo groans. "Ugh... Who's calling at this hour?"

Banjo stands up and answers his phone. "Banjo speaking." He listens to the caller. "Yeah? I see..." He steps away from the table. "So where is it? Uh-huh... All right, I'm on my way." Banjo hangs up. "Looks like I made the right choice to skip the booze."

Banjo looks at Tooty and Britt. "Sorry, but I gotta go take care of some business. Go ahead and eat without me.

Tooty stands up as Banjo keeps talking. "I don't know how late I'll be. Tooty, you help him out, okay?"

Tooty has a sorrowful look on her face. "...Okay."

Banjo walks out of the dining room and to the front door. He opens it and is greeted by the sight of rain pouring everywhere. "Tooty, it's raining out. What did you do with the laundry?!"

Tooty calls back. "I already brought it in!"

"...All right. Well, I'm off."

Tooty and Britt hear the sound of the car driving off. Tooty sits back down and turns on the TV. There's a woman talking about the weather.

"-for this week. Next, let's take a look at the hourly breakdown of tomorrow's weather. With storm clouds moving in from the east, expect rain throughout the day tomorrow in most areas."

Tooty looks away from the TV and looks at Britt. "Let's eat." Tooty then starts eating her food.

Britt finds himself alone with Tooty and decides to strike up a conversation.

Britt starts it up with, "What does your big brother do?"

Tooty looks up from her food and to Britt. "He... Investigates stuff. My brother's a detective."

A jingle is heard on the TV and then a news reporter is shown on screen. "And now for the local news. Royal underling of Princess Peach, Toadsworth, is under fire for an alleged relationship with a female teacher. His wife, the best chef in Rogueport, Zess T., revealed to this station that she will likely pursue damages. In response, the teacher Toadette will be replaced by a substitute. Until allegations of an affair with Toadsworth are resolved, she'll remain out of the public eye.

Tooty speaks up. "...This is boring."

Tooty changes the channel and a commercial comes on.

"At Junes, every day is Customer Appreciation Day! Come see for yourself, and get in touch with all of out products!" The commercial ends with a small song. "Every day's great at your Junes!"

Tooty smiles and starts singing as well. "Every day's great at your Junes!"

Britt smiles to himself, until Tooty looks at him. She speaks to him, "...Aren't you going to eat?"

Britt gets an embarrassed face, "Sorry, tonight was just so eventful."

* * *

Britt and Atravese belong to me.

The blue-skinned, pink-haired girl (Nastasia), the Koopa girl in the Calorie Magic commercial (Koopie Koo), Toadsworth, Zess T., Toadette, Peach, Timpani, Blumiere, and Rogueport belong to Nintendo.

Banjo and Tooty belong to Rare Ltd.

Persona 4 (Golden), Moel, Junes, and the shops in game belong to Atlus.


	3. Chapter 2: The Dream and School

The opinions expressed herein do not necessarily those of the creator nor anyone he knows.

* * *

A half-hour later, Britton and Tooty were watching Jeopardy on the TV. A woman's voice comes from the screen, "I'll go Frosty Flicks for 100."

The host speaks. "A Timothy Hutton movie about the resurrection of a Neanderthal." Britton, like most people who watch quiz shows, speaks what he thinks is the answer. "Iceman!" A man presses his buzzer. The host speaks to the man, "Larry." The man, Larry, says the answer, "What is Iceman?" The host says it's the correct answer.

Britt then looks at the time. It's 8:30 P.M. He starts feeling drowsy and then stands up. "I'm going to bed."

Tooty looks from the screen and then nods.

Britt goes up to his room and looks around.

"This is the room I'm borrowing from Banjo..." Britt spoke to himself. The room had some shelves, a sofa, a study desk, a TV, a coffee table, and a futon.

Britt flops himself on the futon after folding it to a bed. then starts to shut his eyes then thinks to himself. "I'll be living in this town for a year, starting today... I hope everything will be all right... School starts tomorrow in this district. I should sleep well."

* * *

Britton wakes up in a very foggy area. The fog was so thick, he could cut it with a knife if he had one. Britt stands up, noticing he's on a brick path that leads straight forward. Britt nervously followed the red brick road.

He then hears a voice. "Do you seek the truth...?" Britt's heart skipped a beat, but reluctantly, he moves forward. He hears the voice again. "If it's truth you desire, come and find me..."

Britt keeps moving forward, scared that whoever is saying these things might not do anything good to him. Britt keeps walking down the brick path, which seemed to go on forever, until he saw a big red door. He touched it, and then it opened on its own.

Britt, scared walks in. He then sees a katana on the ground and picks it up. Suddenly, a shadowed figure in the fog appears before him. "So... You are the one pursuing me..."

Britt steps back, then the man speaks again. "Hmhmhm... Try all you like..."

Britt, scared by the man, slashes at him. The man doesn't seem fazed, not even flinching. "Hmmm... It seems you can see a little, despite the fog..."

Britt slashes at the man again, feeling like he could be a threat to his life. Like the last slash, the man didn't flinch. "I see... Indeed... That is very interesting information..."

Britt slashes at the man again, but he still didn't flinch. "But... You will not catch me so easily..."

Britt speaks up. "Catch YOU?! YOU'RE probably the one who wants to catch ME!"

The man speaks again. "If what you seek is 'truth,' then your search will be even harder..."

Britt yells at him. "STOP SPEAKING IN RIDDLES, YOU...!"

The man utters something. "Bewildering Fog..."

The fog gets so thick, Britt can only see himself and only a few inches in front of him.

The man's voice comes from behind him. "Everyone sees what they want to..."

Britt slashes behind himself, hitting nothing but the fog.

The voice comes from Britt's left. "And the fog only deepens..."

Britt slashes again, only hitting the fog.

The voice seems to be coming from random angles, making Britt slash at those areas, only tiring himself out.

"...Will we meet again...?" Britt slashes, but hits nothing. "At a place other than here..." Britt swings his sword again, once again only hitting the fog. "Hmhm... I look forward to it..."

Britt finally swings his sword vertically. He swung it so hard that when it hit the ground, it broke in two. Britt is so tired, he broke into hot sweats and he collapses.

Britt can only utter to himself. "Damn it... Leave me alone...!" He starts losing consciousness. His eyes shut completely as he can only feel the sword's handle in his grip and the cold, brick road.

* * *

**April 12, 2013**

Britt jolts awake, sweat dripping down his body. He looks around, seeing he's still in his room.

"What the hell was all that supposed to mean...? 'Everyone sees what they want to... and the fog only deepens...' Was that a message?"

Before Britt could answer his own questions, he hears a knock on the door.

"Breakfast is ready."

Britt recognizes the voice as Tooty's. "I'll be there in a minute, I need to take a shower and dress for school."

Britt goes to the bathroom with his school clothes and towel folded. He sees several bars of Old Spice soap and Odor Blocker body wash. He also sees some sticks of Old Spice deodorant next to the sink. He smiles to himself, knowing that a hot shower will wake him up and refresh him.

After taking his shower and getting dressed, he goes downstairs. He sees Tooty bringing a plate of scrambled eggs to the table, with some toast and bacon to go with it, along with a tall glass of milk.

Tooty looks at him. "Good morning." Britt says the same to Tooty then sits down. Tooty then brings three pill bottles to Britt. "Are these yours? I found them in your bag."

Britt forgot about those when he first got to this place. "Oh, those are my medications. I have to take them every morning." Britt takes one pill out of each bottle. "It's for my self-esteem."

Tooty nods. "I see. Anyway... Let's eat."

Britt puts his eggs and bacon in between two slices of toast and then eats it. Tooty just eats them separately. When Britt finishes half of his food, he speaks. "Do you do the cooking?"

Tooty looks at him and nods. "I can toast bread... and cook boiled, scrambled, and sunny-side up eggs in the morning. Banjo can't cook, so we either get fast food, eat frozen/instant dinners, or we do leftovers."

Britt nods. After finishing his sandwich, he swallows his pills with the milk.

Tooty finishes, then talks. "You're starting school today, right?" Britt nods, then Tooty continues, smiling. "My school's on the way, so... let's go together." She seemed somewhat restless. Britt decides to go to school with Tooty.

* * *

**School Zone, Cruce flood plain...**

Britt and Tooty walk down the flood plain, with umbrellas over their heads. They stop at a certain part of the road.

Tooty points in front of her. "You keep going straight from here." She turns around and looks at him, smiling again. "My school's this way. Bye." Tooty walks towards her school's location.

Britt looks back at her, then looks in the direction he's supposed to go. He starts walking to his school.

* * *

**School Zone, Intersection in front of the school...**

Britt walks down the road where other students are. He then hears squeaking.

"Whoaaaa...!"

There was a tanuki in a school uniform on a very unstable looking bike. After riding past Britton, the tanuki crashes, then gets up, grasping his leg in pain. "Ngh... Urrrrghhhh..."

Britt then thinks to himself. "That looked painful... I should leave him be..." Britt walks by Swift as if it was normal for him to see people crash their bikes.

* * *

Britt arrives at the main gates of Kōsaten High School. Britt starts to think to himself, "What kind of student life awaits me here...?"

* * *

The classroom was full of high-energy students, all of them greeting each other, having conversations, and all else you'd expect from typical high school students.

A group of three students, two male, one female, are holding a conversation.

One of the boys, sitting down in his chair, speaks. "Ugh... Talk about bad luck... The homeroom teacher here is Lumpy, isn't it?"

The other boy, standing up, replies. "Yeah, it's King Cabbage-for-Brains alright... We get to enjoy his long-ass sermons every day for the whole year..."

The female student joins in. "Hey you guys, I heard there's going to be a transfer student from the suburbs in this class."

The boy who's seated looks at the girl with interest. "Huh? Really? A guy or a girl?"

A girl who is wearing a yellow school uniform with a black skirt and yellow hair overhears the conversation. "A transfer student from the suburbs..." She turns around and starts talking to the tanuki who crashed his bike earlier. "Just like you, huh, Swift?"

The tanuki, apparently named Swift, doesn't respond. He sits behind an empty desk on Erin's left

The girl looks at him with confusion. "...Huh? You look dead today."

Swift has his arms and head down on the desk, still in pain. "Yeah, um... I don't wanna talk about it..."

The blonde-haired girl looks at a girl in front of her, who had brown hair and was wearing an orange school uniform. "What's with him?"

The orange-clad girl looks back at the yellow-clad girl and responds. "Who knows? Maybe he crashed his bike again."

The door to the classroom opens, and everyone is seated, yet still talking. A blue anthropomorphic moose with one antler twisted upside down from the other comes in.

The moose speaks up. "Awright, shut your traps!" The students quiet down.

The moose introduces himself. "I'm Lumpy, your homeroom teacher from today forward!" He looks at the students. "First thing's first! Just 'cause it's Spring doesn't mean you can swoon over each other like love-struck baboons. Long as I'm around, you students are going to be pure as the driven snow!"

Every student in the class (except for Swift, who is too pained to even know what he was saying) gets freaked out by what he's saying. Lumpy speaks again. "Now I hate wasting my time, but I'd better introduce this transfer student." He gestures over to Britton. "This sad sack, I think his name was Britton, has been thrown from a town not unlike this out to a town not unlike his former like yesterday's garbage." He looks at Britt with disgust. "And he's just as much a loser here as he was there, so you girls better not get any ideas about hitting on him!" He stares at Britt. "Tell them your information, kid. And make it quick."

Britt, who was red-faced mad from all the trash-talking directed towards him from Lumpy, replies to him.

"...You calling me a 'loser?'"

_Britton's __**Courage**__ has increased._

Everyone in the classroom (again, not including Swift) gasps at Britt's sudden backtalk. Lumpy looks even more angry.

"Hrnh... That's it, you're on my shit list, effective immediately." Lumpy then gets more serious. "Now listen up! This town is miles away from your town filled with students, who are either or are both, perverts and assholes, in one way than one. You better not thinking of getting involved with the girls, let alone abusing them!" He starts ranting on. "But what do I know... it's not like the old days. Even here, kids grow up so damn fast. Every time I turn my back, you're fooling around on those damn phones, checking your Twitters and your MySpaces..."

Lumpy just keeps going on and on and on, like the Energizer Bunny. Suddenly, the blonde-haired girl raises her hand and speaks up. "Excuse me! Is it okay if Britton sits here?" She gestures to the empty desk next to her.

Lumpy stops and looks at her. "Huh? Yeah, sure." He looks at Britt. "Ya hear that, Britt? Your seats over there. So hurry up and siddown already!"

Britt walks to his new seat, next to the blonde-haired girl, in front of Swift.

The girl turns to Britton and whispers. "He's the worst, huh? Rotten luck for you to get stuck in this class... Well, we just have to hang in there for a year."

Britt nods. He hears people around him pitying him for how Lumpy treated him.

"Sucks to be the transfer student. Ending up in King Cabbage-for-Brains' class on the first morning here..."

"Yeah, he won't think twice about suspending you if you get on his bad side. Then again, we're all in the same boat..."

Lumpy yells. "Shut your traps! I'm taking role, and I damn well expect you to respond in an orderly manner!"

Britt starts thinking to himself again. "My life in this new school has begun. Will I be able to fit in...?"

* * *

Britton, the blond-haired girl (Erin), the orange-clad girl (Melody), Swift, Atravese, Cruce flood plain, and Kōsaten High School belong to me.

Lumpy belongs to Mondo Media.

Tooty belongs to Rare Ltd.

Persona 4 (Golden) belongs to Atlus.

Old Spice, Twitter, and MySpace, and Jeopardy belong to their creators.


	4. Chapter 3: School and the Incident

The opinions expressed herein do not necessarily reflect those of the creator nor any person he knows.

* * *

"That's all for today. Normal lectures start tomorrow."

As Lumpy made his way out of the room, the school's intercom starts to speak.

"Attention, all teachers. Please report immediately to the faculty office for a brief staff meeting. All students must return to their classrooms and are not to leave the school until further notice.

Lumpy turns to the students. "Hrnh. You heard the announcement. Don't go anywhere until you hear otherwise." Lumpy then closes the door.

A girl turns to her friend. "He's seriously starting to get on my nerves..."

The class turns their head to the window from the sound of a siren.

Three males are crowded around the window.

"Did something happen? Don't those sirens sound really close?" This student at the window sounds excited. "Ugh, I can't see a damn thing. Frickin' fog..."

A rumor-loving student talks. "Yeah, like every time it rains lately, it starts getting all foggy."

"Hey, did you hear?" A knowledgeable student talks to the two. "I hear that paparazzi's looking all over for that teacher."

"Oh, yeah." The rumor-lover talks more. "You mean Toadette, right? I heard some guy spotted her at the shopping district."

The knowledgeable one speaks. "Actually, I heard that..." He says something to the rumor-loving one, getting him real excited.

"Are you serious?!"

The rumor-loving one makes a brisk walk towards the orange-clad girl's desk.

"H-Hey, Melody." The rumor-lover is very nervous. "Mind if I ask you something...? Is it true that teacher's staying at your family's inn?"

The orange-clad girl, named Melody, responds. "I can't discuss such things."

The rumor-lover sweats. "Y-yeah, I guess not..." He runs back to the window as Melody's friend, the yellow-dressed girl who sits next to Britton, walks to her.

She sighs and then complains. "Sheesh, how much longer is this gonna take?"

Melody talks to her with a smug look on her face. "There's no telling."

The girl looks to the ground. "I shoulda left before the announcement came on..." Suddenly, the yellow-clad girl perks up. "By the way, didja try what I told you the other day?" Melody looks confused, as the girl explains again. "Y'know... That thing about rainy nights..."

Melody remembers and then has a dismayed face. "Oh... No, not yet. Sorry."

Erin smiles. "Ah, it's okay." Erin goes on. "It's just that I heard a guy in the class next door yell something like, 'My soulmate is Toadette, the teacher!'"

The intercom's jingle sounds and then speaks. "Attention, all students. There has been an incident inside the school district. Police officers have been dispatched around the School Zone." Just when everyone is about to panic, it keeps speaking. "Please stay calm and contact your parents or guardians as soon as possible, and quickly leave the school zone. Do not disturb the police officers. Head directly home. I repeat..."

Several students get excited.

"'Incident'?!"

"What, something actually happened?"

"C'mon, lets go take a look!"

Britton packs everything in his bag and gets up. Melody and her friend walks up to him. "Hey, are you going home by yourself? Why don't you come with us?"

Britt looks at her. "Well, okay. That was very sudden, though..." Britt isn't really used to talking new people, especially a girl.

The girl smiles. "Oh, I nearly forgot! I'm Erin Valentine. You know I sit next to you, right?"

Britt decides to joke, keeping the straight face. "You do?" He smiles. "Just kidding, I know. My name is Britton."

Erin's smile grows a little wider and she giggles. "Anyways..." She gestures to Melody. "This is Melody Melancholy."

Melody looks at him. "Oh, nice to meet you... I'm sorry that this is so sudden..."

Erin looks at Mel. "C'mon, don't apologize like that. It makes me look like I got no upbringing. I just wanted to ask him some stuff. Really, that's all."

Britt stares at Erin. "Let her. I understand her reasons."

Erin looks back at Britt and looks frustrated. "...Sorry, I guess you don't like seeing girl drama..."

They start to walk out of class when Swift the tanuki comes up to them. "Uh, umm, Miss Valentine...?" He pulls out a DVD case from his bag with "Miracles" as the title.

Swift keeps talking. "This was just awesome... The whole movie was just amazing to see... And..."

Erin looks suspicious, then Swift pushes it into her and talks really fast. "I'm really sorry! It was an accident! Please just have mercy until my next paycheck!"

Erin takes it from him slowly as Swift continues. "See ya! Thanks!"

As Swift speed walks away from Erin, she runs towards him in fear of something bad. "Stop right there! What did you do to my DVD?!"

Swift runs faster, but Erin catches up too quickly and hits him where men would get tummy aches from simply watching it.

Swift is crouched on the ground, clutching his pain area as Erin opens the box.

Erin sighs. "Swift, it's just a spec of marker... It's not even on the side the disk is read... You had me worried. I thought my 'Miracles' would be completely cracked."

Swift has tears in his eyes. "I think mine is cracked... C-Critical hit to the nads..."

Melody looks worried. "A-Are you all right?"

Swift looks at Melody, smiling, tears still in his eyes. "Ah, Melody-san... Are you worried about me...?"

Britt looks at Melody and Swift. "Yeah, I'm pretty sure he's not all right." Britt looks at Erin. "Good luck getting his testicles out of his stomach."

Erin looks worried for Swift too. "H-He's fine, guys. Let's just get out before we get in trouble..."

As Erin and Melody leave the room, Britt looks at Swift and thinks to himself. "He looks like he's in a lot of pain..." And just like before, "I should leave him be..." He then follows the two girls.

* * *

Outside...

Erin, Melody, and Britt start to walk out the school gates, but then a weird looking kid walks in front of them.

"You're Mel, right? Y-You want to go hang out somewhere?"

Mel looks confused. "What...? Wh-Who are you?"

Two male students look at what's happening.

"What's up with him? What school's he from?"

"Never mind that, he's going for Melody? Man, you think he'd at least wait until she's alone to make his move..."

"I bet you a can of TaP that he gets knocked out."

"No bet. Haven't you heard how hard the Melancholy Challenge is?"

The strange kid talks again. "Um, s-so, are you coming or not?"

Melody looks away. "I-I'm not going..."

The kid looks angry. "...Fine!" He runs off.

Melody looks confused. "Wh-What did he want from me...?"

Erin looks peeved. "What did he want...? Obviously, he was asking you out on a date."

Melody looks confused. "Huh? Really...?"

Erin looks disappointed. "You really had no idea? Sheesh..." Erin continues. "But then again, that was way over the top. It was creepy how he called you Mel all of the sudden."

Swift rides in on his bike, looking better. "Hey, Melody-san." He looks at Melody, smiling. "Turned down another lovelorn fool, huh? Man, you're cruel. You got me the same way last year."

Melody looks at him, once again, confused. "I don't recall doing that."

Swift looks at her. "Whoa, you serious? So then, you wanna hang out sometime?!"

Melody rolls her eyes. "...I'd rather not."

Swift looks sad. "That'll teach me to get my hopes up..." Swift then looks serious. "Anyways, you two better not pick on the transfer student too much." As Swift rides away, Erin shouts at him. "We're just curious, is all!"

Melody looks at Britt. "U-Um, sorry for dragging you into this..."

More students walk up to the area. Erin looks worried. "C'mon, let's go. Everyone's staring..." Erin walks away with Britt and Melody following.

* * *

Britt, Erin, and Melody are in the middle of a conversation, walking down the street.

Erin replies to something Britt said. "Ah... so you came here because of your parents' job." She giggles. "I thought it was something way more serious." Erin looks around. "There really is nothing here, huh? So much for somewhere close to friggin' D.C."

Britt smiles. "It's usually the way I like it."

Erin smiles back. "That's what makes this place nice," Erin tilts her head and stops smiling, "but there is nothing much we can show people from outside." She smiles again. "Though, there is something from Mt. Suci Lintas... I think our dyed clothes or pottery or something is kinda famous." Erin perks up. "Oh, wait, and there's the Melancholy Inn! Melody's family runs it. It's the pride of Atravese!"

Mel looks surprised. "Huh? It's... just an old inn..."

Erin looks at Melody with a stern, yet happy face. "No way, it's been in all sortsa magazines as a hidden treasure." Erin turns back to Britt. "It's a great inn! It's been going on for generations, and Melody here is going to take over some day." Erin keeps going. "Their inn attracts a lot of visitors to Atravese. It pretty much keeps the town going."

Melody looks displeased. "...I don't think that's entirely true."

Erin looks at Britt. "So, you think Melody's cute, huh?"

Britt just remains silent, looking displeased. Erin frowns. "Sorry... It's just that... She's really popular at school, but she's never had a boyfriend. Kinda weird, huh?"

Britt just rolls his eyes. "Why do you think so? It's her choice. And even then, when one man is near her, another man will go all 'MUST COCKBLOCK' on the one man's ass."

Melody blushes hard. "C-Come on, you two, stop it. Y-You shouldn't believe in that, okay? It's not true that I'm popular or that I've never had a boyfriend!" Mel has a shocked expression. "Wait, n-no! What I meant to say was, I-I don't need a boyfriend!" Mel sighs. "Jeez... Erin!"

"Hahaha!" Erin just laughs. "Sorry, I'm sorry. But this is our chance to talk to somebody from a place like ours, and you barely said a word!"

Just then, Erin's eyes catches something. "Hey, what's that?"

The three walk to an intersection where there's several people and police cars. Two women are talking.

"So that high schooler left school early, and as she came down this street..."

"Wow. Who could imagine THAT hanging from an antenna?"

"I wanted to see it too."

"Uh, you got here too late... The police and fire department took it down just a moment ago..."

"Well, I think it's terrifying. I can't believe a dead body showed up around here..."

Britt, Erin, and Melody look shocked.

"Wait..." Erin got out of her speechlessness. "What did she just say? A dead body?!"

As Erin said this, Banjo walks from behind the police blockades. "Hey, what are you doing here?"

Britt looks at him and answers honestly. "We were just passing by. We didn't know we would come across you, Banjo."

Banjo nods. "Huh... I should have figured that'd happen." He shakes his head. "That damn principal. We told them not to let them through here..."

Erin looks at Britt. "You know this guy?" Britt nods in reply.

Banjo scratches the back of his head. "I'm Detective Banjo, his guardian. Uhh... Well, how should I say this...? I hope you get along with him." Banjo then gets to his original point. "But you three ought to stop wandering around and head straight home." Banjo walks back to the scene, then a man with blonde hair runs by him, with a very sick expression...

"Ngh... Uuuurrghhh..."

The man vomits on the street's corner.

Banjo looks angry. "Samuel, I know it's your first time on field, but seriously?! Do you want to get sent back to central office?!"

Samuel, the blonde-haired man, looks up and stares at Banjo. "I-I'm sorry..." He grunts.

Banjo sighs. "Go wash off your face. We're gonna go around and gather information!"

Banjo continues to walk back to the crime scene, with Samuel running behind him.

Erin speaks. "Is this what the announcement was about...?"

Melody talks to herself as well. "What do they mean... It was hanging from an antenna...?"

Erin looks at Melody. "Hey, Melody...? Why don't we should go to Junes some other time..."

Melody nods. "Good idea..."

Erin looks at Britt. "Alright then, we're taking off. Starting tomorrow, neighbor, let's do our best!"

With that, Erin and Melody walk off. Britt decides to head away from the crime scene and go home...

* * *

All areas except for Junes, and the characters Britton, Swift, Erin, Melody, and Samuel belong to me.

Banjo belongs to Rare Ltd.

Lumpy belongs to Mondo Media.

Junes, Persona 4 (Golden), and the Shin Megami Tensei series in general belong to Atlus.

Miracles is a Jackie Chan movie.


	5. Chapter 4: The Midnight Channel Rumor

None of the opinions expressed herein do not necessarily reflect those of the creator nor anyone he knows.

* * *

Britton and Tooty are sitting in front of the TV, with the news on. Tooty has a sad look on her face. "I wonder if big brother's not coming home again tonight..."

The news announcer starts to speak. "Our top story this evening concerns a bizarre case in a quiet suburb. Around noon today, a woman was found dead near the Gadakvet'a River in Atravese."

Britt is shocked and pays extra attention to the TV as the School Zone is being shown on the TV. Britt then thinks to himself. "Could this be the incident I heard about...?"

The announcer proceeds with the story. "The deceased has been announced as Toadette, age [unknown] at the elementary school. The initial results of the Atravese Police Department have revealed..."

Tooty looks up. "Ah! The Atravese Police Department! Th-That's where big brother works!"

Britt looks at her, worried. "Hey, calm down. It'll be alright."

Tooty looks at him. "...I know. That's his job, so this stuff happens."

The announcer continues. "The body was found hanging from a large television antenna atop a local resident's roof. Authorities are uncertain as to why the body was in such a state. With the cause of death also uncertain, police continue to investigate whether the death is an accident or a homicide. A thick fog common to the area has slowed progress, and plans to fully canvass the area are delayed until tomorrow."

It seems that the elementary school's teacher was found dead near the Kōsaten High School campus. The teacher, Toadette... Her affair with a royal servant had been on the news just the other day.

Tooty has a worried look on her face. "They found her on the roof? That's scary..." Suddenly, she gets happy when she hears a little chime on the TV. "Oh, it's Junes!"

"At Junes, every day is Customer Appreciation Day! Come see for yourself, and get in touch with our products!" The classic song at the end plays. "Every day's great at your Junes!"

Tooty once again sings it. "Every day's great at your Junes!" She then turns to look at Britt expectantly.

Then, out of the blue, Britt just sings "Your Junes!"

Tooty smiles at him. "You memorized it already? I'm the best one in my class!" Tooty sings the song to herself over and over again. It seems she's forgotten about the scary story.

However, later, she gets a sad face and sighs. "I wonder if my big bro's coming home..." She keeps looking at the TV with a worried expression on her face. Britt decides it's best to leave her alone.

Britt walks upstairs, still tired from trying to get used to his new life, not because of the type of neighborhood he's in, but the school, the people, and what season the school started, and then rests.

* * *

**April 13, 2013**

Britt is walking down the street, when Swift speeds by him, and then...

"**FUCK!** S-Someone..."

Swift crashed his bike, but this time, he crashes into, and ends up rolling around in, a trash can. Britt, taking pity on the poor tanuki, decides to help him out of the trash can.

* * *

After helping him out, Swift smiles. "Whew, you saved me. Thanks! Umm..." Swift seems to be thinking, but then remembers. "Oh, yeah, that's right. You're that transfer student, Britton." Swift nods his head to him. "My name is Swift. Nice to meet ya!" Swift is in the normal high school outfit, except that as he's an animal, he's acceptably barefoot, and he has a cowlick on the top of his head.

Britt smiles. "Nice to meet you too. Hey, I have two questions, one, are you okay? And two, is your bike okay?"

Swift knows Britt's concerns. "Oh, yeah. I'm fine. All that garbage in the can prevented me from getting a concussion. And..." Swift rolls the bike back and forth, and it squeaks. "Meh." Swift then remembers something else. "Say, did you hear about the incident yesterday? They found that teacher lady hanging from an antenna!"

Britt and Swift walk down the street to school, Swift rolling his bike next to him. "You think it's some kind of warning? There's no way something that weird could've been an accident."

Britt nods his head. "You might be right."

Swift hangs his head to the right. "Dangling a dead body over a roof like that... That's just messed up." Swift's face turns into disgust. "Then again, it's messed up to kill someone in the first place."

Britt then decides to brighten the mood. "Unless it's a snitch. Nobody cares if a snitch is killed, beat up, or dismembered, because a snitch is a snitch."

Swift can't help but smirk, but then he looks at his watch. "Oh crap, we're gonna be late!" Swift smiles. "You wanna ride? It's still a little squeaky, but it should be fine."

Britt, reluctantly, gets on with him.

* * *

"Alright, settle down."

The students quiet down as the teacher, named Dilbert, talks.

"As Lumpy told you, normal lectures start today. You're all lucky that he's only a homeroom teacher. Everything here might be important for you to get a job. My job is to teach you guys philosophy. Now, I don't want anyone in this class talking about the murder as of now, okay? Get your books out." As Britt looks at Dilbert, he listens to his lectures intently.

_Britton's **Knowledge** has increased._

* * *

After school, Swift stands up and stretches, then turns to Britt. "So, you getting used to this place?"

Britt nods and simply says "Yeah."

Swift smiles. "Wow, that was fast. There's basically everything to do in a suburban neighborhood, comparing your place with this place. Except for that certain... something you can't get anywhere else. The air's clean, the foods great... Oh, you know about the local delicacy?" Swift smiles wider. "It's grilled steak, man! Like that's anything special, huh?"

However, to Swift's surprise, Britt stares contently at him. "Go on."

Swift proceeds. "I know a place where you can get it cheap. Wanna come? You helped me out this morning, so it's on me."

Erin walks up to the two boys. "Did somebody say something along the lines of 'grilled steak cheap'?"

Swift groans. "You're going to jump on the fail-boat if you don't pay for your own goddamn steak."

Erin seems content on getting her steak. "Either treat me and Melody, or don't treat anyone."

Melody just groans too. "Erin, don't drag me into this. I don't want to gain any more weight. And I need to help out at the inn, anyways."

Swift looks amazed. "Wow, Melody-san! You started training to take over the business?"

Melody continues. "It's not like that! I'm just helping out when it gets busy. Well, I should be on my way."

After Melody walks out, Erin looks at Swift. "Oh well. We should get going, too."

Swift just groans. "Do I seriously have to treat two people?" Swift then gets a text, then he smiles. "Well, I guess I can. You'll be surprised."

* * *

**Junes, Food court...**

Erin sits across from Britt, looking, in a lack of better words, pissed off. "THIS is the cheap place you were talking about...? They don't have grilled steak here."

Swift comes in with three plates of steak and three sodas. "They do now."

Erin's angry face suddenly turns into joy. "So THIS is the reason you took us to your place."

Swift just rolls his eyes and sits down. "Dude, this isn't _my_ place or anything." After Swift sees Britt with a confused face, he explains. "Oh, right. I haven't told you yet, huh? I moved here from, contrary to popular belief, not a suburban town, but a rural town, about six months back. This location just opened up, and my father was assigned to manage it. So our entire family came out here." Swift picks up his drink. "Here, this is to welcome you to town." Britt picks up his drink as Swift continues to speak. "Valentine, yours is on me too."

Erin picks up her drink. "Yeah, I know." The three hold their drinks up as if to propose a toast and they start drinking and the conversation became animated over small talk. Erin brings something up. "It's only been half a year since this place opened up, but I haven't been to the local shopping district much since. A lot of stores their packed up and moved to this place, and... Oh, uh..."

Swift just looks at Erin. "...You can't blame it all on Junes, can you?" Swift groans as Britt looks confused again. Just then, a girl with red hair sits one table away from them. She wears an apron like that everyone else who works at Junes wears and she has a tan-ish skin color. Swift perks up and smiles. "Hey, it's Reed-senpai! Sorry, be right back."

As Swift gets up and walks to this girl, apparently named Reed, Britt asks a question. "Is that Swift's girlfriend or something?"

Erin laughs. "He wishes! That's Reed. Her family runs a liquor store in the shopping district. ...I think she's working here part-time, though. Everyone in the shopping district say she's trying to get Junes to accept them in."

Where Swift is, he tries to talk to Reed. "Hey, you look beat."

Reed smiles and talks to Swift. "Heeey! I'm finally on break... What's up, Swift-chan? Boosting the family business by bringing your friends here?"

Swift just smiles and jokes with her. "Madam, you wound me!" Swift then gets serious. "Kidding aside... You look down. Did something happen?"

Reed just sighs. "...It's nothing. I'm just a little tired."

Swift tries to cheer her up. "Hey, if you need to talk, I'm always willing to listen. I..."

Reed chuckles. "I'm okay. Thanks, though." Reed then look away, sighs, then talks to herself. "Why'd I leave school early yesterday...?"

Swift looks confused, but then Reed looks to where Britt and Erin are sitting. "Hey... is he the kid who transferred here?" Reed walks towards the table. "Are you the transfer student?"

Britt replies to her. "Yes I am. Your name is Reed, right?"

Reed looks shy. "Oh, did you hear about me already? It must be nice to talk to someone who's from a place like this, huh? I don't see Swift-chan hanging out with other guys much."

Swift tries to cut in. "Uh- -Not necessarily."

Reed continues to talk about Swift to Britt. "He doesn't have too many friends, so I hope you two get along good. Swift-chan's a good guy, but he can get nosy sometimes. You gotta tell him right to his face when he starts to annoy you."

Britt just looks at Reed disapprovingly. "Nah, he's a great guy."

Reed just laughs. "I know... I'm just kidding."

Swift just shakes his head. "C-C'mon, Senpai, there's no need to believe in something like that."

Reed looks at the three. "Well, my break's about over. Back to work I go... Laters!

Swift tries to call out to Reed. "Oh, uh, Senpai...!" Reed doesn't hear him, so Swift just sits down and laughs. "Hahah, Reed-senpai says I'm annoying, but she's even nosier than me. She has a friend who she treats like a younger brother, and she pretty much treats me the same way..."

Erin smirks. "Ohhh, you don't want her treating you like a brother, huh? Haha, I get it... So that's how it is..." She smirks more. "The daughter of a family-run liquor store and the scion of the invading chain... Hoho, the flame of forbidden love!"

Swift bangs his fist on the table. "DUDE! It's nothing like that!"

Erin rolls her eyes. "Oh reaaaally... Well, I know just the thing to cheer up that lovesick heart. You ever hear of the Midnight Channel?" Swift and Britt then look at her. "You're supposed to look into a TV that's switched off, alone, exactly at midnight on a rainy night. While you're looking at your own image, another person will appear on the screen... And they say that person is your soulmate."

Swift gives a confused smirk. "What? For a second, I thought you were actually going to say something useful... How can you get so excited over a childish urban legend like that?"

Erin looks agitated. "Childish, huh? You don't believe it, do you?!"

Swift rolls his eyes. "Of course I don't!"

Erin tries to convince him to do it. "Well, it's raining tonight! Let's all try it out- -then you'll see!"

Swift looks confused. "Try it out...? Wait, you haven't even tried it yourself!?" Swift just looks at her in awe. "Wow, I'm trying to remember the last time I heard something this stupid..." Swift shakes his head. "All that aside... you guys know that "incident" yesterday? You guys think it was murder?" Swift puts on a goofy grin. "Ooh, what if the culprit behind it was still lurking around...?" Swift makes the goofiest evil laugh he can.

Erin just looks at him distastefully. "Sheesh, you shouldn't joke about stuff like that. Now who's the childish one...? All I'm saying is that you guys should try it out tonight."

Britt has now heard the rumor about the Midnight Channel, when one can see one's soul mate on a rainy night. Britt thinks to himself. "Maybe I should try it out tonight..."

* * *

Britton, Erin, Melody, Swift, Samuel, and every location (except for Junes) belong to me.

Banjo and Tooty belong to Rare Ltd.

Persona 4 (Golden) and Junes belong to Atlus.

Toadette, Toadsworth, and Zess T. belongs to Nintendo.

Dilbert belongs to his creator.


End file.
